Device for sanding rails.



- I A flaw/4m MWMWM, qdwm No. 866,721. PATBNTED SEPT. 24, 1907. H. A. HALL.

DEVICE FOR SANDING RAILS.

APPLICATION FILED MAB..20.1907.

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HERBERT A. HALL, OF KENNEBUNK PORT, MAINE.

DEVICE FOR SANDING RAILS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 24, 1907.

Application filed March 20, 1907. Serial No. 363,493.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HERBERT A. HALL, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Kennebunk Port, York county, State of Maine, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices for Sanding Rails, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a device for sanding railroad rails.

In railroad stations and other places where it is necessary to keep the track constantly sanded to enable the train men to have complete control of the trains, it is common practice for a man to take a pail of sand and a small shovel and apply the sand by this means to the top of the rail. It is impossible by this means to prevent a great waste of sand and there is always an uneven distribution of the sand.

The object of my invention is to distribute the sand without waste in a thin line in the center of the rail where the wheel has its bearing. For this purpose I make use of the device hereinafter shown and claimed.

I illustrate my invention by means of the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a sanding device constructed according to my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan of the bottom, Fig. 3 is a plan of the top. Fig. 4 is a section on sex of Fig. 1 and Fig. 5 is a detail of the discharge opening and its cut off.

The device is composed of a box A which is preferably made as here shown, narrow at the forward end and broader at the rear end so that when the device is in its normal position pitching forward, it will allow the contents to substantially all run out. The box I preferably make of galvanized iron or other sheet metal with legs a a on its rear end and in the bottom of the forward end I form a discharge opening a (Fig. 5) which opening is controlled as here shown by a slide or cut off 0 sliding in suitable guides c.

The sand as it falls from the opening a, is distributed in a narrow line on the center of the rail by means of a supporting and distributing wheel B journaled on an arbor which is secured horizontally in the lower ends of cleats b secured to the sides of the box.

The wheel B is adapted to perform the double purpose of supporting one end'of the device and enabling it to be rolled along the rail and also of distributing the sand along the center of the rail. It is provided with a single flange b and a central annular groove 1) and the surface of the wheel is as here shown provided with numerous fiat faces or angles for the purposes of producing a jarring action. The wheel also has a slight taper and as the device is held in one hand somewhat at one side of the rail, the axis of the wheel is held at a slight angle with the rail. These features have a tendency to keep the flange against the edge of the rail and do away with into operative position.

cured to the lower end ofthe vertical bolt (2*.

the necessity of having two flanges as the wheel will hug closely to the rail.

The opening a is located vertically over the groove and a little forward of the center of the wheel so that the sand as it falls in the groove will follow down the front side and be deposited in a thin 'line on the rail.

For the purpose of propelling the device, I provide a handle at the rear end and provision is made for automatically opening the slide 0 when the handle is put As here shown, the handle is composed of a metal rod D bent to pass through a pair of ears d secured to the end of the box, the ends of the rod being turned up to form stops d which bear against the box and hold the handle in operative position. A wooden roll 01 is shown as fixed to the outer end of the rod D and the entire handle is adapted to fold down against the end of the box for convenience in stowing the device away in street cars or other places where it may be kept. Means are shown for opening 'the slide 0 when the handle is lifted into its operative position and for closing it when the handle is dropped down.

As here shown, I attach a rod 0 to the slide, this rod extending back substantially to the rear end of the box. Attached to the rear end of the rod 0 is a cord, or other flexible connection 0 passing over a pulley c and se This bolt cl is screw threadedand has on it an adjusting thumb nut b bearing on the upper surface of a plate d through which the bolt d passes. This plate d connects the two parallel arms of the rod D and is supported thereby.

The upper end of the bolt (2 is provided with an eye by which it can be easily lifted and the slide pulled wide open at any time when it becomes clogged. It will be noted that the opening a is normally open only part way according to the amount of sand required and this opening may be increased or diminished by raising or lowering the thumb screw b The slide 0 is closed by the action of a suitable spring 0 which is secured to the bottom of the box and the rear end of the rod 0 so that when the handle D is released and falls down against the end of the box, the slide is automatically closed by the spring 0 For the purpose of screening the sand as it is put into the box, I secure a suitable screen 9 on the top of the boxin such a manner that it will be flush with the upper surface of the box and so that the coarse material may be readily swept off. The screen is secured as by means of a hoop or frame. e which fits over the outer edge of the box, inclosing the turned down edges of the screen and this hoop is held in place by screws or bolts. By removing the screws the hoop may be taken off and the screen released. The small end of the screen is made solid to prevent the sand from over flowing at the small end of the box. As here shown the solid portion f is provided with hinges so that it may be easily opened to permit access to the interior of the box. A button f is provided for holding down the cover f.

A carrying handle is provided to convey the box from place to place as it may be made of suitable size to be carried about like a pail. As here shown, there are two cross pieces f extending across the box irom one side to the other at or near the center and near the top. Secured to these cross pieces are two uprights f joined at the top with a handle f It will be seen that this device may be filled with sand which will be automatically screened and-carried bodily to the track to be sandedand then pushed up and dowlrthe track distributing the sand evenly along the center of the rail, the angles on the wheel producing a jarring motion which prevents the sand from clogging.

Since the wheel is provided with a single flange and the box with a narrow end, the device can be used on any rail wherever a car wheel can go even if one sideioi the rail is filled with ice or otherwise obstructed. it,

I c1aim;-

1. The herein described device for sanding rails consisting of a box, a supporting wheel adapted to run on the rail journaled under the forward end of said box, said wheel having an annular distributing groove therein, a discharge opening being provided in said box directly over said groove and a handle on the rear end of said box for propelling the same.

2. The herein described device for sanding rails consisting of a box, a supporting wheel adapted to run on the rail journaled under the forward end of the box, said wheel having angular faces on its surface to produce a jarring motion, a discharge opening being formed in said box adapted to discharge sand onto the rail and a handle on the rear end of the box for propelling the same.

3. The herein described device for sanding rails consisting of a box, a supporting wheel adapted to run on the rail, journaled under thev forward end of the box, a valve d ischarging sand to the rail in the forward end of the box, a handle pivoted to the rear end of the box for propelling the box, a stop to retain said handle in a horizontal or working position and mechanism connecting said handle with said valve for opening the valve when the handle is raised to its normal position and means for closing said valve when the handle is released from its normal position.

a. The herein described device for sanding rails consisting of a box, a supporting wheel adapted to runon the rail, journaled under the forward end of the box, said wheel having a central annular groove for distributing the sand, an opening being formed in the bottom of said box vertically over said groove for discharging sand therein, a slide or cutolf for closing said opening, a spring for closing said slide, a handle pivoted to the rear end of said box for propelling the same and a flexible connection connecting said handle with said slide for opening the same when the handle is brought to its normal or working position.

5. The herein described device for sanding rails consisting of a box, a supporting wheel adapted to run on the rail, journaled under the forward end of the box, said wheel having a central annular groove for distributing the sand, an opening being formed in the bottom of said box vertically over said groove for discharging sand therein, a slide or cutoff for closing said opening, a spring for closing said slide, a handle pivoted to the rear end of said box for propelling the same, an adjusting rod passing vertically through said handle, a nut for vertically adjusting said rod and a flexible connection connecting the lower end of said rod with said slide for opening the same when the handle is in its normal or working position.

6. The herein described device for sanding rails consisting of a box, a supporting wheel adapted to run on the rail journaled under the forward end of the box, a discharge opening being formed in the box to discharge sand onto the rail, a folding handle on the rear end of the box for propelling the same, a screen covering the top of the box, and a carrying handle secured to the top of the box for conveying it from place to place.

7. The herein described device for sanding rails consisting of a box, a supporting wheel adapted to run on the rail, journaled under the forward end of said box, said wheel having a flange in one side only and an annular distributing groove therein, a discharge opening being provided in said box directly over said groove and a handle on the rear end of said box for propelling the same.

HERBERT A. HALL.

Witnesses S. W. Barns, ELEANOR W. DENNIS. 

